1.21.1 Training

It had been a few hours since he had last practised with his skills, and in that time, his skill core had filled to its capacity. So, standing amidst the grass, he instantly decided to test his [Flight] skill. He had yet to his [Axe Hand] skill, but the allure of flight was far more inviting, beckoning him with its promise of freedom, the feeling of wind and wonder. Who did not dream of soaring through the sky?

[Flight.]

His feet left the ground, and he found himself hovering a few inches above it.

"Now what? How do I Move?"

Michael his gaze drifted up at the cloudless sky. "Sky is no longer the limit."

His body lurched, floating upwards. The flight was not fast, a more leisurely drift than a rapid ascent, barely faster than his own walking speed.

He looked down, the cabin and the pavilion diminishing in size. Birds flew in the distant horizon, but none were near where he lived. Now that he thought of it, this was the first time he had seen a bird ever since he arrived in this world, odd that.

But who cared why they were absent? He was flying! He felt no sense of vertigo at the experience, only the thrill of it—heights had never bothered him.

He wanted to reach beyond the sky. He was no longer the prisoner of gravity. Michael would conquer the sky, he would make it his domain. He went ever upwards. But as his eyes turned to the sun, he remembered the story of Icarus.

"What am I doing? What if I reach the limit of my skill? I will fall to my death."

Michael shivered, panic burning through his being. He thought of returning to the ground, his skill obeyed his intention, taking him back to the ground at a lethargic pace. When his feet touched the earth, feeling the moist grass beneath, he let out a sigh of relief, heart pounding like a beating drum.

Taking a moment to collect himself, Michael inspected his Skill Core. Since discovering his Magicore, he had begun to sense both it and the Skill Core, as if seeing it from the corner of his eyes. He only had to focus to inspect them.

His flight had consumed more than half its energy. He had flown for about three minutes. That implied the [Flight] skill consumed, one Skill Point per minute, just like his [Life detection] skill.

***

[Axe Hand]

Nothing happened. Michael paused to think how to make this skill work. It was called [Axe Hand], wasn't it? Maybe he should perform a correct hand gesture to activate this skill.

Michael made a chopping motion with his left hand. A diagonal slash.

[Axe Hand.]

The skill activated. Thankfully, though, the skill did not work like his absurd imagination, turning his hand into that of an axe blade. Instead, a thin, almost invisible layer of air enveloped his hand, sharpening into a keen edge upon impact. The thin branch he had attacked dropped, cleanly chopped off from its parent.

"Wow. I am a walking blade now." 

The skill was perfect for a surprise attack, if he ever needed one. But he knew this skill would not help him in hunting. If he could get that close to the game, he wouldn't have a difficult time catching them, would he?

A suspicion crossed his mind, and he immediately tested it.

[Axe Hand.]

This time, he made the chopping motion with both his hands. The skill activated for both his hands. "Yes, It worked."

The second skill activation cost him two Skill Points, he realised, as he inspected his Skill Core. Now he had enough charge left for four more tries if he used a single hand. He used it up in seconds.

After enough tests, he came to learn that his Skill Point was equal to his total levels. He was level six [Hunter] and level one [Practitioner], that meant he had seven Skill Points. Not only that, but gaining the second primary class had given him another happy surprise; now it only took him half an hour to recover a single Skill Point.

***

Instead of flipping to the next chapter, Michael decided to leaf through to the final chapters that detailed various spells. He did not do it to skip his training or anything like that. He just wanted to know what the book had to offer, the spells he would learn. Even when reading books and watching television, Michael always looked up the spoilers first, this was no different.

The spells came with its name, its nature and uses and finally, the method of casting it. He ignored the last part. He knew he would not understand it without the prior foundation.

He began reading about the list of spells the book offered.

Michael couldn't help but feel underwhelmed. The majority seemed mundane and irrelevant to his current circumstances.

Spell to help plant growth, spell to heal damaged plants or wipe out the diseases and weeds. Spell to plough the land, multiple spells to increase the quality and quantity of harvest.

Spell to ward off insects.

Michael paused. Many of those spells were indeed useless to him, he had no idea how to plant anything. The last one, however, could be useful. [Insectbane] combined with his [Flight] ability might come in handy for his infecting wounds. Yes, indeed. He decided this would be the first spell he would learn once he gained a proper foundation.

Michael continued through the list of spells. Almost ninety percent of the spell was so mundane, but there were few he found to be useful.

Spell to preserve food, for instance, was perfect for his condition. Then there was the spell to draw water from the atmosphere. He may have plenty of water right now, but he might need that spell in the future. He decided this to be his second spell.

There was no [Fireball] spell to his dismay, but there was a spell to help him start a fire without Flint and Steel, that could come in handy.

Then there was a spell to regulate the temperature within a small bubble, useful for various climate and weather conditions.

These spells were all useful for his new lifestyle, but none of them were flashy as he wanted them to be. No wonder this was a spell book for a farmer.

He sighed, reflecting on the lack of powerful offensive options. Even the closest thing, [Windlash], was designed more to scare off animals that were invading the farm lands than to combat formidable foes. Despite its limitations, he marked it as his third spell choice.

Michael sighed again. Why couldn't there be more powerful spells? What if there were more monsters like those cockroaches? "The [Windlash] spell will not not even tickle the thing."

"But you take what you get."